By Jason Cunningham
Many fans of Of Montreal are conflicted, weighing out their comparisons between their past 10 albums. From the classic pop sound of Cheery Peel to the psychedelic swirl of Skeletal Lamping, they’ve watched the band transform from folk to funk. Kevin Barnes and his cohorts have dove into the later with full force on False Priest.
Alter ego George Fruit is hard not to see on this album, who was largely the identity of the past two albums, supposedly shelved by Barnes this time around. When we first saw Fruit on Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? he carried Barnes through some rough times that including his divorce and drug usage, then his full pledge transformation into the persona occurs. On Skeletal Lamping he was the Hyde to Barnes’ Jekyll, taking over completely in a violent franticness, offering a brilliant yet disjointed psychedelic sexual odyssey.
Opposed to recording False Priest at his home, an art Barnes has perfected, he went into the studio with producer Jon Brion, replacing the synthesized sounds of his previous work with a return to organic instruments. The results are phenomenal. This is a truly coherent funk album with fun lyrics that beg for your attention. The music’s pop sensibility is smoothly driven by the thick rhythm section, complimenting the piercing power of Barnes’ falsetto.
Album opener “I Feel Ya’ Strutter” is complete fun. it might be better than any other Of Montreal opening track. “So Cristal mimosa fizz for what you is/With being your one solid lion-hearted brother yeah” Barnes gracefully sings into an icing on the cake scream. The following song “Our Riotous Defects” features Janelle Monáe who helps end the song in a heavenliness that matches pace with Barnes’ swelling voice. Monáe also appears on “Enemy Gene” acting as the driving coolness to Barnes’ sidecar warmness. Barnes also does an electrifying duet with Solange on “Sex Karma” that acts as a stabilizer between the album’s first and second half. “Famine Affair” and “Around the Way” are the two catchiest songs on the second half, the later coming before the preachy blowout jam ” You Do Mutilate?”.
The epic funk episode that is False Priest will leave the listener itching to hear the B-sides.
